El Tigre: Of Churros and Guacamole Monsters
by Fanggrrl
Summary: Frida gets into an accident. A mystical object of power is passed down. A legal trick allows Chipotle to get the date of his dreams. And a sinister plot is brewing between the villains of Miracle City.
1. Sinister Beginning

Chapter 1

This story takes place two years after the final El Tigre: the Adventures of Manny Rivera episode; No Boots, No Belt, 'Brero. This story is will focus more on Frida, but there's going to be a lot of Manny too, so don't worry. Any reviews, whether positive or negative, are always welcome. I do not own El Tigre, or any of its characters or locations. Jorge R. Gutierrez and Sandra Equihua were the ones who originally created El Tigre, not me.

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A loud explosion ripped open the side of the Miracle City Bank. Out of the hole a huge, hairy thug bounced out with large bags of money in his arms. It was El Oso, doing what he did best and loved the most: robbing. He had a necklace of skulls and a hat in the shape of a bear head. The smoke cleared, and the bear-themed villain's grin turned into a snarl when he caught sight of Manny Rivera.

"Stop right there, El Oso!" the brown-haired fifteen-year-old shouted. "Or face…El Tigre!" With a swift spin of his Tigre belt buckle, a flash of light and the mighty roar of a tiger, he had transformed into El Tigre. He was a tiger-based super that was undecided as to whether he should be a villain or a hero, but lately it seemed he was leaning more towards hero. His father and Grandpapi had noticed this too. Rodolfo had been practically walking on air that his only son was following in his heroic footsteps, but the villainous Grandpapi had been more temperamental then usual lately.

He had started to bulk up a little with age, was several inches taller, and the beginnings of what could someday grow into a natural beard or moustache were starting to show. However, what made El Oso suddenly let out a deep laugh was the croak in the boy's voice. "Haha! Mans, you gotta funny-soundin' voice now!"

El Tigre's chocolate eyes narrowed and he balled his clawed hands into fists. With a super fast run he lunged at El Oso. Before the thug could react, El Tigre had punched the super villain right in the middle of his forehead. With a grunt of pain, the dim-witted thug was knocked down onto his bottom.

"Ow! El Tigre, you'll pay for that when I break outta jail again, man!" he said. No sooner had the words left his mouth, he suddenly felt handcuffs being slapped on. He was hauled into the back of the police van by three nervous policemen while El Tigre proudly watched.

"Dude, you knocked El Oso out with _one_ punch! That has to be like a personal record!" a chipper-sounding voice suddenly commented from right next to him. He jumped in surprise before he realized that it was just Frida, Manny's best friend and who now was only occasionally his sidekick/partner in crime. They hadn't been spending as much time together as they used to. She had been spending more time hanging out with her band, the Atomic Sombreros, and he had been spending more time fighting crime and villainy.

Like Manny, the blue-eyed girl had grown taller too. Her blue hair-which, oddly enough, was natural and had been passed down from her father-had grown longer and fuller. Her physique had also started developing, the beginnings of an hourglass figure starting to show. She still wore her favorite outfit though; white shirt, rockstar boots, and a red skirt with suspenders. And mustn't forget her beloved red goggles. They were practically her signature.

"Hey, Frida!" Manny grinned. "Want to go hang out at the arcade? I heard they just got the brand new Super-Macho Fighter IX!" He spun his belt buckle again, returning to his normal self.

Just then, a tall African-American girl with what had to be the best-groomed afro in the world, walked over. She had a stripped pink shirt and jeans on. It was Rosa, the bassist in Frida's band. Next to her was Teeny, the ironically named overweight drummer. "Yo, Freeds, we got a gig to play tomorrow at the Miracle City Park!" Rosa exclaimed excitedly around the lollipop that she was chewing on.

"Yeah, we got to practice tonight so we get everything right!" Teeny added, equally as excited.

"Awesome! We've been trying to play there for ages!" Frida grinned and hi-fived her bandmates. "Well, what are we waiting for let's go!" She started to run off after the two girls, but then she suddenly remembered Manny and stopped. "Oh, uh…hey, Manny…" she started with a nervous smile before Manny waved it off.

"Ah, no problema. Go practice. We can go to the arcade after your concert," he said, trying to act like he wasn't disappointed, even though he was.

"There's going to be an exclusive after party!" Teeny called from the distance.

Frida smiled nervously, fighting between her extreme want to spend time with her band and their fans, and disappointing her best friend. Manny sighed. "Well, we can go to the arcade another time," he said, forcing a smile. "You go on ahead," he said. When she still hesitated, he rolled his eyes. "Oh, come on, it's not like I'll have nothing to do! This city is a cesspool of crime and villainy! Besides, I'll see you at the concert," he assured her.

"Well…alright then. See you later, Manny!" With that, Frida turned around and ran after Rosa and Teeny, leaving Manny alone in the middle of the street.

From inside a dark alleyway, two pairs of eyes had watched the entire scene. The eyes watched Manny walk away with a downtrodden sigh. A slightly wheezy laugh rang out, followed by a light cough. A large form walked out, followed by a much smaller-but no less dangerous-one. The large form was a guacamole monster that had been created by the small boy next to him. However, the boy wasn't any ordinary boy. No, he was a mad scientist that had a flair for evil. His name was Dr. Chipotle Jr, not that many people remembered anyway. He hadn't grown much in the past two years, maybe an inch at most. He was always going to be short, just like his father and grandfather. Also like his paternal ancestors, he wore a lab coat, had dark red eyes, and a robotic arm and eye. His robotic arm could be turned into a devastating weapon. Unlike his balding father and grandfather, however, he had thick, unruly hair that went in all directions. An evil smile was plastered on his face when he looked up at his creation. The monster stared back blankly. Nobody said guacamole monsters were smart.

"Do you know what this **means**, my Guacamole Monster?" the twelve-year-old genius questioned coyly. When the food monster shook its head, Dr. Chipotle Jr threw his head back and let out another wheezy laugh. Even his monster's stupidity couldn't ruin his good mood! "It **means** that El Tigre is distracted, and therefore vulnerable!" he began. "Now is the perfect time for I, Dr Chipotle Jr, to strike! I will get ride of El Tigre, and Miracle City shall tremble before us, my Guacamole Monster!" he exclaimed, nearly shouting now from excitement. He had always been on the louder side.

"And also…" His expression grew surprisingly tender. "Frida…my dear, blue-haired love….they aren't as close now as they used to be, but she still likes him, which is a problem!" He rubbed his hands together eagerly, a calculating look in his eyes. "When I get rid of him, she, like the rest of this city; **Will. Be. Miiiiine!**" he said, ending the sentence with another shout. He laughed again, hastily climbing onto the monster he had created.

"Now, my monster," he hissed determinedly. "To the Miracle City Museum!" Several minutes passed by with no movement. Dr Chipotle Jr frowned and looked down to find his creation holding a tortilla chip and trying to eat itself. His non-robotic eye twitched. "I've told you before, you incompetent beast: stop eating yourself!" he shouted at the top of his lungs. "Now, move!" he growled, ignoring the simple-minded monster's teary eyes.

Dr Chipotle Jr. could feel that his long-awaited victory was within his grasp. All those other times, from the moustache incident to the Robot Guacamole Cowboy, they were just practice runs. This time, he **would** get rid of that annoying gato!


	2. Scary Agreement

Chapter 2

Mucho gracias Acosta and Crazytomboy! I hope you enjoy this chapter too!

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El Tigre was sitting on top of a building, his feet dangling off the edge. He was looking off into the distance at nothing in particular, lost in his thoughts. The distance between him and his best friend had been going on for awhile now, and it seemed to only be getting bigger. Ever since the day that his El Tigre Belt, his father's Bronze Boots of Truth, and his Grandpapi's Golden Sombrero of chaos were taken away by Dr. Eugene L. Butterman and all the supervillains went on a huge crime spree. They had all gotten their mystical objects of power back, and they had defeated all of the bad guys. The fifteen-year-old laughed at the thought of the extremely boring, and easily frightened, veterinarian. "Heh, we never have seen Dr. Butterman since that day."

Standing atop a mountain of badly charred criminals, Frida had grabbed him and planted a huge kiss on his mouth. Frida had laughed it off afterward, saying that she had just gotten lost in the moment. What was really weird, though, was how he felt oddly…disappointed by her explanation. A part of him had wanted her to have actually meant the kiss.

Had his disappointment shown? Is that why she had been avoiding him? Or was it that she actually _had _meant the kiss? His ears perked up and he smiled. He stood up, an idea forming in his head. He would make her realize that she cared about him! "This I swear!" he said, raising his hand in the air in the same dramatic gesture that his father and Grandpapi often used.

Just as the words left his mouth, he heard the sound of a burglary alarm coming from the direction of the Miracle City Museum. Being the supermacho superhero that he was, he could never turn down the chance to fight a bad guy. He was willing to bet it was the Moustache Mafia. Those mobsters were still after that golden moustache.

It didn't take El Tigre long to arrive at the museum, thanks to how fast he was and how good he was at jumping from building to building. Just like he had expected, the door had been busted open. However, he was wrong about who was the one doing the robbing.

Dr. Chipotle Sr. was walking out of the museum with an armful of jalapeño pepper-themed artifacts. While his son was fascinated by guacamole, the older scientist had always been fond of jalapeño peppers. Plus, they made for smarter monsters. His Jalapeño Monster was waiting right in front of the building for him.

"Drop the loot, Dr. Chimpanzee!" El Tigre exclaimed, forgetting the mad scientist's name like always.

The supervillain growled. "It's Chipotle!" he shouted angrily. Then he let out the Chipotle family's trademark wheezy laugh. "And Dr. **Chipotle** Sr. will do as you wish, El Tigre," he said with a sly grin. In one swift movement, he dropped the artifacts-which clattered safely to the ground-and turned his robotic arm into a laser cannon. He fired, but El Tigre quickly dodged to the side and avoided being hit.

El Tigre's eyes zoomed in on a churro stand that had been abandoned by its vendor. "Perfect," he said. He remembered that Dr. Chipotle Sr. was allergic to churros. Evading the giant red fists of the scientist's Jalapeño Monster and lasers that were being fired at him, he ran towards the stand.

Just as he was about to make it, he was slammed into the ground when a laser that came from a different direction hit him square in the back. "Ow," he groaned. Even though he was feeling slightly disoriented, he started to push himself off of the ground. However, he was simply pushed back down by the weight of a certain Guacamole Monster's foot. He heard two wheezy laughs, then the sound of light footsteps. A small pair of black shoes came into Manny's view, followed by a slightly larger version of the same shoes.

Dr. Chipotle Jr. grinned down at his soon-to-be-deceased arch nemesis. He felt his father's robotic hand rest on his shoulder proudly, making the young scientist grin wider. "Dr. Chipotle Sr. is very proud of his son for defeating El Tigre," the older scientist congratulated his son.

"Goodbye, El Tigre!" Dr. Chipotle Jr. looked up at his monster, who was waiting for the order. "Now, my Guacamole Monster, **crush** that swine!"

El Tigre closed his eyes tightly, fearing that he was going to finally be defeated for good. By Dr. Chip and Dip no less! How was it that he hadn't realized that the small supervillain was there too? He should have been able to smell the guacamole from a mile away, or heard the monster's heavy footsteps. The young hero waited for his sure demise.

Then waited. And Waited some more. "Huh?" He opened his eyes slowly, wondering if it had happened so quickly that he hadn't even realized it. What he saw made him grin. Golden boots with little blobs of guacamole on them filled his line of vision. He knew those boots anywhere.

Manny jumped to his feet and threw his arms around White Pantera, his father, who hugged him back. "Papi, you saved me!" When he pulled back, he realized two things. One, he-and nearly everything within the vicinity-was covered in guacamole. Two, both the Jalapeño Monster and the Chipotles were nowhere in sight. "Where'd Dr. Chicken-pot-pie one and two go?" he asked.

White Pantera sighed as he stood up and brushed off a piece of Dr. Chipotle Jr.'s monster from the shoulder of his trademark white suit jacket. "They fled on the Jalapeño Monster when I defeated the guacamole one with my Power Punch Kick." The superhero smiled down at his beloved only son. "I'm just glad you're alright, mijo. Don't worry, we'll catch them next time," he assured his son in his usually optimistic and cheerful way.

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Manny said. He still couldn't believe that he had messed up badly enough that it had almost cost him his life.

"Now, let's go home," Rodolfo said to his son. His voice suddenly became high-pitched with excitement. "I'm making a special dinner tonight; food!"

Later, at the home of Frida Suarez…

"Awesome job, guys! We are totally going to rock at that concert!" Frida grinned and carefully set her cherished guitar down. "I'm willing to bet a hundred churros that 'A Cat Pooped on My Lawn Again' is going to be a huge hit!"

Teeny and Rosa nodded in complete agreement as they also set down their equipment. They had practiced all day and nearly all night in their lead singer's house with the approval of Frida's father, Chief Emiliano Suarez. However, he had told them a specific time for when they had to stop, and it had unfortunately reached that time.

"Later, Freeds, see ya tomorrow at the concert." Rosa waved at Frida as she left. Teeny wasn't far behind.

"Later, guys!" Frida called before closing the door. Just as she turned and started walking away, she heard a knock on the door. "Did you guys forget something?" She opened the door and saw…nothing. "Hello?"

"Ahem!" The sound of an attention-getting cough sound brought Frida's eyes closer to the ground. A short boy with thick slicked back brown hair stood on her doorstep and a couple bruises and minor scrapes on his face. He had glasses over dark-red eyes, a small black hat, and a long-sleeved shirt with the image of a red chili on it. He was holding a stack of papers that was nearly as tall as him. Frida blinked a couple of times, trying to remember who he was. He seemed vaguely familiar. "Dude, I'm drawing a blank here. Who are you?"

The twelve-year-old's eye twitched in irritation. No matter what he did, it seemed like he never made that big of an impression on people. None of that mattered though when he was basking in the glorious presence of his blue-haired beauty. "It is I, Diego," he announced proudly. When her expression remained blank, he smiled and held up the stack of papers. "I just finished your report on the art of playing an exploding guitar while eating churros?"

"Oh, yeah, now I remember!" Frida grinned and took the stack of papers from him, surprised at how heavy it was. "Thanks, dude!" She started to close the door, but he stuck his foot in the way.

"Why, Ms. Suarez," he cooed as he pushed himself all the way in. He leaned forward, getting close enough in the young rocker's personal space for her to feel very uncomfortable "Remember our deal? I do your homework, and you go out on a date with me. I have it in writing, see?" He miraculously pulled out a piece of paper filled with far too many words that were far too big for Frida to understand. Yet sure enough, at the bottom of the legal document was her signature. "It says so in the fine print."

With the aide of a magnifying glass, Frida was finally able to see the extremely small words below the line that she had signed:

By signing this paper, I hereby declare that I will go out on a date with Diego, at the date and time of his choosing, as a reward for doing my homework.

"But-" Frida's protest was hastily interrupted by the grinning Diego. "I look forward to our date on Friday, my blue-haired light!" Before she could dodge him, he placed a quick kiss on her cheek, then made a hasty retreat out the door.

Frida stood there with wide eyes and her mouth hanging open in shock. Outside a nearby window the moon could be seen setting and the sun took its place. Still, she stood there in stupefied horror. Then it finally hit her. She had to go out on a date with that Diego kid. Her hands felt numb; the papers all fell to the ground.

Her shrill scream could be heard all the way in outerspace. An astronaut shed a tear for her.


	3. Accidents Happen

Mucho gracias once again! Hopefully this chapter is liked just as much!

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Chapter 3

"Mija, what's wrong?!" Frida's father and Policia Jefe Emiliano Suarez rushed into the room to see why his much-loved daughter was screaming. The usually strict man had a presence that practically commanded respect, from his uniform to his eye patch and sombrero complete with a police siren on top. The man lived to put away criminals, most of them ones that were beaten by a Rivera. To most of the world-including that troublesome, rotten El Tigre-he was a strict and unmoving man, but he loved his familia with all of his heart, especially Frida. She was the only one who could guilt him into doing things, such as letting her become a Police Cadet when she couldn't even do one pull-up.

Two identical-looking girls with chestnut-hair and mean smiles weren't too far behind him. They were Anita and Nikkita Suarez, Frida's older twin sisters. They wore Police Cadet uniforms, and were never far away from each other. They even spoke in turns, each one saying a word or to at a time. "We think Frida's gone crazy, Papa!" they voiced, their voices as harsh as their smiles.

Emiliano frowned briefly at them before walking over to the still-screeching girl and kneeling down. "Mija? Frida!" the man shouted over her screaming so she could hear him. She abruptly stopped screaming when she heard his voice and started crying, throwing her arms around him. Needless to say, the Suarezes's two rottweiler dogs, both of which wore spiked collar but one missing an eye, were grateful for the more quiet atmosphere. Frida's father, however, growled protectively when he heard her cry. "It was that Rivera kid, wasn't it?" he said with his fists clenched tightly in anger. Oh, how he would punish that punk!

"No, no, Papi, it's not Manny!" Frida exclaimed, pulling away with miraculously not one tear on her face. She explained every horrifying detail to him. The Police Chief sighed resignedly when she was done. "If it was a legal contract, mija, then there's nothing that can be done. You must abide by the law," he said, even though he hated his daughter being tricked into a date like that. "You must go out with this Diego tomorrow," he told her, the words burning on his tongue. "But cheer up, tonight is the night of your concert!" Like he thought it would, that made her smile and forget about Diego temporarily.

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Meanwhile…

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At the Miracle City Harbor, a wheezy laugh could be heard coming from a not-so-secret lair. The building could be seen glowing green at night, a reaction from far too many radioactive experiment gone awry. The shape of a gigantic skull was sculpted onto it. The inside of the building consisted mostly of laboratory equipment, chemicals, books, and food ingredients. This was the lair of the Chipotles, Jr., Sr., and Senior Sr.

Inside the building, a giddy little mad scientist rushed around, gathering specific ingredients. Dr. Chipotle Jr. brought the ingredients to his own lab area. He walked up the steps-which he had stolen-to his stool-also stolen-and sat on it, dumping the chemicals and food on the table. The young scientist was basically alone, his father out trying to rob banks and his grandfather sound asleep. Now was the perfect time to prepare for tomorrow, which he could feel would determined his destiny forever. It was he that had tricked Frida into going out with him. Diego was his civilian alter-ego. He used the same things that his brilliant father had used to get Dr. Chipotle Jr.'s mother; trickery and legal documents.

The twelve-year-old started mixing several of the chemicals together. He needed to keep El Tigre busy so that the swine wouldn't ruin his date with Frida. He remembered how his best friend, Sergio, said that he had been able to convince the gorgeous rocker to go to a school dance with him. Then Manny, the filthy feline that he was, he went and ruined everything for the then thirteen-year-old Italian boy. "I will make sure you do not do that to me, El Tigre," Chipotle Jr. said as he turned on the heat on in one of his beakers.

"Howdy, pardner!" What sounded like a very poor imitation of John Wayne's voice suddenly boomed through the laboratory. Dr. Chipotle Jr. let out a high-pitched, startled squeal and fell backwards off of his chair. He sat up, rubbing his head and glaring in the direction of the doorway where his rude intruder stood. "Dr. Chipotle Jr. wishes that **you would stop doing that**!" he exclaimed, shouting the last half of the sentence.

A ten-foot-tall robot cowboy suit stood in the doorway of the mad scientist's room. The adult-looking cowboy was grinning ear-to-ear at having scared the pint-sized Chipotle. The cowboy wore a hat, a red mask that covered the upper-half of his face, a moustache, and the very faintest whisper of stubble. The moustache was part of the robot suit, but the stubble was real. Most people didn't know that the supervillain Señor Seniestro wasn't an adult but was in fact the now fifteen-year-old boy Sergio. The cowboy gave a hearty laugh. "Sorry, amigo…" The chest of the robot cowboy opened, and the red-eyed, freckled boy with a well-kept appearance and brown hair jumped out. "But-a you should-a really pay-a more attention to your surroundings." Just like that, he lost the ridiculously inaccurate Texan accent and returned to his normal Italian one.

Sergio had grown to be only a little taller than Diego, so he was still small enough to fit into his beloved mechanical cowboy suit, but that also meant that he was still bullied in school for being the small kid. That's why he had been excited when a month ago he started growing facial hair; finally, something that made him look more his age! He was never going to shave. He thought that maybe with his knew 'rugged' look, he would be able to catch his blue-haired goddess's eyes. Thus far, no luck.

Dr. Chipotle Jr. huffed indignantly and climbed back onto his stool. "Dr. Chipotle Jr. can't play games right now, Sergio," he said, knowing that was why his friend was here. They would frequently pit their creations against each other in the middle of Miracle City. They used stereotypical videogame controllers to command the behemoths from safely inside Sergio's home, and a special screen that kept score and also gave the creatures the appearance of an arcade game. "I am far too busy." He just wished the other boy would leave already. He didn't want to get into another feud with his friend, which he knew would happen if Sergio found out about his date with Frida.

Sergio frowned at the large amount of ingredients that the scientist was dealing with. Then his eyes caught sight of a bottle that sat on a table by Dr. Chipotle Jr.'s bed. "What's-a that?" he asked suspiciously. He walked over and realized with surprise exactly what it was; cologne! The words Guacamole Amore were written on it in poor handwriting. He knew instantly that it was Jr.'s handwriting; his friend's robotic arm might make for a good weapon, but the bulky fingers made for poor handwriting.

"Huh?" Chipotle glanced up from his work and gasped when he saw Sergio holding the bottle. "Don't touch that!" he shouted. He ran over and ripped it from the Italian boy's hands. "I mad-uh, I mean..." He strained his genius brain for a good reason why he would have the Guacamole-scented cologne when he heard the sound of his grandfather snoring. He smiled and casually set the bottle back down on his nightstand, acting as if he wasn't hiding anything. "It was a present from Dr. Chipotle Jr.'s grandfather, Dr. Chipotle Senior Sr."

"I see," Sergio said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. It was clear that he was still suspicious. "And-a why would he-a give you that?"

"He thought it was my birthday," Chipotle returned smoothly. He started pushing Sergio back to his Señor Seniestro suit. "Dr. Chipotle Jr. must get back to work now. Lots of loot in Miracle City with my name on it," he said. He only pushed harder when Sergio started resisting. "I heard that there was a cowboy sculpture being built in the Miracle City Park!" he lied. "Dr. Chipotle Jr. thinks you should go there!" he finished in a rush as he gave his friend one final push out the door. He didn't bother to see if Sergio bought the story, slamming the door to his room shut. Using his robotic arm, he hastily locked all the locks and deadbolts on the door from top to bottom. He listened for a couple minutes until he heard the distinct sound of robot footsteps leaving. "Phew. That was a close one." He wiped the sweat off his forehead, then turned back to his table.

"Now, time to get back to my preparations."

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Later, at the Miracle City Park…

* * *

"…A cat pooped on my lawn, again!" Frida screamed the last line of the song as she strummed her guitar. Panting from exertion, she gazed at the expressions on the people in the crowd that had gathered around the concert stage. For a second the crowd was silent, but then just as the rocker started to get worried, her audience erupted into applause. Frida grinned triumphantly and looked down at Manny, who was standing right in front of the stage. He gave her two thumbs up, which she happily returned.

Suddenly, an explosion sounded behind her and she looked up to see Señor Seniestro floating mid-air with the aide of the rockets in his feet. Frida saw smoke coming out of one of his arms, which had been shaped into an old-west styled firearm. She followed where he was looking and saw charred rubble where the golden statue of Municipal President Rodriguez had stood.

"There's-a no cowboy statue here!" the supervillain exclaimed angrily. Then he heard the all-too-familiar sound of a tiger roaring. He looked down just in time to see the grappling claw coming towards him. He grinned and caught the long chain that extended the claw. "Yeeeeeeee-haw! It's time for a rodeo, ya flea-bitten coyote!" he shouted as he activated his rocket-propelled feet again.

El Tigre's face fell when he saw the cowboy-themed villain catch his claw. Maybe that wasn't such a good idea. Then he saw Señor Seniestro disappear further into the sky with his claw. "Uh-oh." No sooner had the words left his mouth, he was yanked into the air. He gulped when he went past the laughing criminal-who had let go of the young Rivera's claw, letting momentum take care of El Tigre-and spotted what was going to be his next painful destination: the bottom of an airplane. With a loud thud, he crashed into and dented the metal of the plane. While the passengers on the plane wondered what the noise was, the fifteen-year-old began falling back towards the ground. He crashed through the middle of the concert stage's large background, landing with a pain-filled _oof_ sound.

Frida gasped in alarm. "Manny!" She started running over to her injured best friend, but then she heard one of the oddest sounds she'd ever heard. She looked up just in time to see the stage background land on her.

Señor Seniestro had flown down close to the ground and watched El Tigre crash through the stage with a malicious laugh. Then he caught sight of his beloved blue-haired goddess, and all vicious thoughts temporarily left his mind. Her beauty could put all the other fillies in this town to shame. He was disrupted from his thoughts by the sound of the heavy stage set falling.

His eyes widened in horror when he saw that it was going to land on his little buttercup. The stage fell before he could get there in time. "No!" he shouted in denial. The sounds of police and ambulance sirens rapidly approaching cut through the night, and Sergio worked furiously at the controls of his cowboy suit. The mechanical hands gripped the edge of the stage and quickly stood it back up. The ambulances and police cars were pulling up now, so there was no time to check down to see if his beloved crush wasn't totally, well, crushed. Ignoring the commands to freeze coming from Chief Suarez, he zoomed away with a knot in his stomach.

* * *

Early next morning…

* * *

Miracle City's prison had the most high-tech hospital in the city, so many times that was where civilians with serious injuries were rushed. Frida was there now, sitting in a hospital bed. She was fast asleep, partly due to the medicine they had given her to ease her pain. The doctors were amazed that she escaped with as few injuries as she did. They said what had saved her life was her goggles holding up the stage. The famed goggles now rested on the table in the corner of the room. The top of her head was covered in bandages, one of her arms and both of her legs were in casts, and from the neck down to her feet she was covered in bruises, bandages, stitches, and miscellaneous little scratches.

Manny was fast asleep in a chair that he had pulled up next to her, his head resting on his hands on the edge of her bed. His initial injuries had been minor at worst, and they had quickly healed. One of the many perks of being a super. He hadn't slept nearly all night, too worried about his friend. But then exhaustion had finally won out and he had passed out.

Frida's family had stayed through the night, even Anita and Nikkita. They had just reluctantly left when the prison doctor assured them that she was okay and in good hands, and that there was nothing that could happen from them being there while she slept. The doctor hadn't been able to convince Manny. He needed to be there with her, and there was nothing anybody could do to make the fifteen-year-old leave.

"Anybody awake?" a soft, gentle voice questioned. It came from the beautiful Maria, who stood in the doorway with what appeared to be a bundled up blanket. When neither teenager stirred, she smiled kind-heartedly and walked into the room. She was wearing her usual colorful dress, but her gorgeous chestnut hair was frazzled from the stress of last night's events, and her warm chocolate eyes were pinched in worry. She was Manny's mom, and Rodolfo's ex-wife. She hadn't been able to stand the worry that filled her whenever he fought crime, always wondering if he was going to make it, or if this was the last fight. With Manny now following in White Pantera's footsteps, the kind mariachi singer spent a lot of her time breathing in paper bags.

She walked over to Frida's bedside, opposite of Manny's side. "Oh, poor Frida," she whispered, her eyes tearing up at the sight of the normally energetic rocker looking so frail.

"Hm? Who's there?" Frida stirred, her sapphire eyes slowly fluttering open. She managed a weak smile when she saw Maria. "Oh, hi," she said. Then her eyes zoomed into the bundle in the woman's arms and she perked up. "You brought churros?" she asked happily.

Maria laughed and shook her head. "No, no, sweetie," she said kindly. She bit her lower lip in thought. "Frida, I've been meaning to talk with you." She sat down on the edge of the bed and took the young girl's hand, ignoring the questioning look in her eyes. "Last night just proved that I am right for wanting to ask you what I'm about to ask you."

"Well, what do you want to talk about?" Frida asked, completely clueless about what was going to happen next.

"Well, you see…" Maria paused. "You spend your time with Manny, fighting crime, with no way to protect yourself. I couldn't live with myself if something had happened to you before I could do this." The woman looked down at the bundle in her arms, but she still seemed unsure.

"Do what?!" Frida asked, becoming impatient. She was never good at waiting.

Maria took a deep breath and forced herself to reach into the bundle and put the object on Frida's lap. It was a large, silver glove. "I want you to be Plata Peligrosa."


	4. Buenos Dias, Hero

Sorry for the long wait, this one gave me a lot of trouble, but to make up for it this chapter is extra long.*Grin* Thank you very much to everybody for your positive reviews, hopefully you enjoy this chapter just as much.

* * *

Chapter 4

"You want me to do what now?" Frida asked in surprise, her eyes glued on the mystical object of power on her lap.

"I want you to become the next Plata Peligrosa," Maria repeated. "You need something to help keep you safe. You are like a hija to me, Frida," she admitted. "I've already convinced your parents to let you," she added. "So, you don't have to worry about that."

Frida picked up the glove tentatively and looked it all over. The mystical object of power was surprisingly light for its bulky size. "But won't I become all danger-crazy and stuff?" the blue-haired girl asked. She had witnessed several times what the powerful glove did to the normally timid librarian.

Maria gave the girl a reassuring smile. "Not if you only wear the glove for no more than one hour; it's a fact!" she said, holding up a book titled 'Time Limits for Superheroes' and the image of a stopwatch on it. "And I only want you to use this in an emergency, like when you need to protect yourself or Manny. Frida, are you listening to me?"

"Yeah, yeah, sure, use only for an hour, I heard you," Frida said, though she was obviously too interested in watching the pigeons that were perched on the window explode from Miracle City's extreme heat. She looked up at Maria with a grin. "So, can I wear the glove now?" she asked, eager to get superpowers of her own.

Maria let out a long-suffering sigh and nodded. "Yes, just as soon as you put this one," she answered. She pulled out a red wristwatch and handed it over to the fifteen-year-old teenager.

"Awesome!" Frida quickly put the watch one, then immediately slid her hand into the mystical object of power.

Manny was suddenly awoken by a flash of silver light. "Huh, what, it was Señor Chappi, I swear!" He sat up in a half-awake panic, then he froze in shock at what he saw. He blinked a couple times and rubbed his eyes, thinking he must have something in them. When that didn't change what he saw, he pinched himself as hard as he could in case he was dreaming. Realizing that what he was seeing was indeed real, all he could do was stare in disbelief. "Santo Sanchez!"

Frida was standing proudly on the bed with not one injury one her body. She now wore the powerful glove, what looked like a one-piece silver swimsuit, a silver sombrero, red cape, long silver boots, a silver mask, and a long silver glove on the arm opposite the one with the mystical object of power. "A-ya ta ta ti!" she shouted the Plata Peligrosa battlecry. She grinned ear-to-ear and looked down at her sleek new outfit. "This. Is. So. Cool!" she exclaimed. She could practically feel the power coursing through her veins. It felt so…right. She hadn't even felt this way that time that she had stolen Manny's El Tigre belt so she could feel powerful 'just for once'. She was willing to bet she could even fit her goggles into the sombrero.

Manny shook himself our of his stupor. "Frida, what are you doing with my mom's glove?" he asked his best friend.

Frida jumped into the air, did a backflip, and landed right in front of him. This was so wickedly cool! "Manny, your mom gave me your glove so I could be safe and all that junk!" she answered as if it were obvious. She grabbed the front of his shirt and hauled him up, squishing her face against his. "Do you have any idea what this means?" He just shook his head. "We could go out and fight crimes together, or even take part in crimes!" She let go of him, and he inelegantly fell down to the floor. "Dude, just think about the different things we could do!" She heard the sound of a foot tapping, reminding her that Maria was still there.

Maria's arms were crossed over her stomach and she was frowning at the blue-eyed girl. "Frida, remember what I just told you? Only in emergencies," she reminded. She glanced down at her own wristwatch and gasped. "Oh, dear, I'm going to be late for work, and you two are going to be late for school!"

Frida and Manny both looked at each other and grinned as they arrived to the same idea at the same time. Maria frowned in disapproval, guessing what the two teens had thought of. "Oh no, Frida, I said that you can only use the glove in emer-…" Both of them just looked at her, and she sighed, knowing the battle was lost before it had even begun. "Alright. just this one time."

* * *

Earlier that night, back at the lair of the Chipotles…

* * *

A loud explosion ripped open the door of the green-glowing building. Dr. Chipotle Jr. was sitting on the couch with a bowl of nachos. He had finished his work approximately fifteen minutes ago, and was now awaiting the-hopefully-successful return of his father. The young genius nearly jumped out of his scientist smock at the substantially loud intrusion, yet somehow Chipotle Senior Sr. remained fast asleep on the couch. The elder Chipotle really needed to get a new hearing aide.

Chipotle Jr.'s eyes narrowed in annoyance at the sight of the infamous robot cowboy Señor Seniestro standing amid the smoke and rubble. He opened his mouth to make a no doubt genius and sarcastic remark, but then he noticed two things. One, Jr. noticed that Seniestro's eyes were red, and not just from the tears the trailed down his face; there was so much rage in those eyes that it was almost like there were flames in them, with a skull and crossbones in the center of his pupils. Second, that rage was clearly directed at the little scientist.

"Diego, you lyin' varmint!" The ten-foot-tall supervillain's robotic fists disappeared, quickly replaced by the Old West-style weapons that he had used not that long ago. "There was-a **no** cowboy statue at that park!" he growled out the words. He both of the guns at the mini-Einstein and fired, but Chipotle had already recovered from his surprise and quickly jumped out of the way of the rapidly firing lasers. "But do you-a know what was? Do you?!" So distraught was Señor Seniestro that his deep voice cracked at the last sentence and returned to Sergio's normal high-pitched voice for that brief moment. All the while, he kept firing, not caring that his weapons would soon overheat. The need to destroy was nearly as all-consuming as the feelings of grief and guilt, but not nearly so heart-breaking.

Dr. Chipotle Jr. kept running, ducking or jumping when necessary to dodge the blasts. He had never seen his friend so furious, not even the time that they had feuded over Frida, or when he had been sentenced to 500 detentions in a failed attempt to expel Manny Rivera from school. Something was wrong, but Chipotle was too busy keeping himself alive to think about what could be causing Sergio to act like this. Behind him, the wide array of high-tech gadgets and machinery that him, his father, and grandfather had spent countless years to invent and create were in irreparable ruins. Now it was his turn to get angry. His robotic arm transformed into his very own laser cannon, and still running, his aimed it at the cowboy. Unfortunately, his weapon took a moment to warm up before it could start firing, unlike Seniestro's weaponry. Sergio specialized in robotics, unlike the Chipotles who specialized in food-based creatures and facial hair sciences. Ironic really, considering they were the ones with a metal arm and eye.

Before Chipotle's weapon could finish warming up, Seniestro's left arm transformed from the gun to a robotic lasso. Without hesitation, he threw the lasso, aiming slightly ahead of the running twelve-year-old. Dr. Chipotle Jr. managed to react just in the nick of time and dug his feet into the floor to halt his momentum. He let out a sigh of relief when the electrically-charged lasso fell harmlessly in front of him, but the twelve-year-old's relief was short-lived when he felt a powerful robotic hand grab and then slam him into the wall. "Oww…" he groaned. Jr. was being held about ten feet off the ground, which was eye-height for the cowboy supervillain. He glared at the other supervillain defiantly. "Dr. Chipotle Jr. warns you to drop him right **now**, Sergio!"

"After what you made-a me do?" The tech-savvy villain's eyes narrowed dangerously. He brought his free hand-or in this case, weapon-up and aimed it directly at the twelve-year-old villain's face.

Dr. Chipotle Jr. was visibly sweating now and started struggling even though he knew it was futile. His eyes couldn't seem to leave the weapon that was pointed at him. "I didn't make you do **anything**!" he exclaimed, his loud voice laced with panic. "What are you talking about?"

Seniestro pushed Dr. Chipotle Jr. harder into the wall and let out a growl that would have sounded more at home coming from a rabid canine. "That-a rotten El Tigre and the blue-haired goddess, they-a were there!" It was Sergio's normal voice that answered, not the deep one that he always used when he was in the cowboy suit. If there was ever a sign that the fifteen-year-old villain's emotions were running rampant, it was that he was forgetting to alter his voice. Inside the Seniestro suit, Sergio's hands-which gripped the controls tightly-started to shake ever so slightly.

Dr. Chipotle Jr. had managed to tear his gaze from the now-trembling weapon and looked at Sergio as a terrible feeling of dread started to crawl through him. Something had gone horribly wrong, he knew that by know, and the young genius was afraid that he had figured it out. He gulped nervously. He was almost too afraid to ask, but he had to know. "What happened?"

"That-a mangy coyote, he was-a spoilin' for a fight, and I gave him one, that's what-a happened!" The weapon that was pointed at the young scientist lowered, but it didn't seem like either of the young supervillains even really noticed or perhaps they didn't completely care at the moment. Jr. was too focused on hearing Sergio's next words, and the cowboy-worshipping villain was lost in the memory of the all-too-recent events.

"It wasn't-a my fault!" Seniestro exclaimed defensively, imagining the blame he placed on himself echoed in his friend, which it wasn't. "El Tigre was-a the one that crashed through the stage and-a made it fall…" The teen villain's voice trailed off, though Chipotle was able to quickly place two and two together. The mechanical hand that was holding the scientist off the ground went limp and the twelve-year-old fell down onto the ground. "She didn't-a dodge out of the-a way in time." He hung his head in shame.

Dr. Chipotle Jr. got back on his feet and dusted off his smock. Thoughts raced through the scientist's mind, trying to assure himself that Frida was alright. "Dr. Chipotle Jr. assumes the policia were there?" he asked. Part of him expected his friend to become vengeful again, but Sergio just nodded. "Then she could have been taken to the hospital," he reasoned. He forced a hopeful smile and extended his robotic arm to pat Seniestro on the shoulder. "She'll be fine." Despite his own words, the young scientist's insides were being eaten away by doubt and the guilt that if anything did happen to the young rocker, it would have been him that had directed the Italian boy to the park. Whether he was guilty or not, he needed to make sure that his friend's anger wasn't directed at him again, plus, he also genuinely felt that somebody else was also to blame.

"Sergio, **neither** of us are to blame, but I know who is." The mad scientist's declaration caused Sergio to look at him. Realizing he had gotten his friend's attention, he continued with a vicious glint in his eyes. "El Tigre."

"Eh?" Just then, Dr. Chipotle Sr. Senior sat up. The elderly scientist looked around at the laboratory, which was now in smoking ruins. Frayed wires from priceless, destroyed equipment sparked, and chemicals of all sorts were now in useless puddles on the floor. He rubbed his bald head in confusion. "What happened here?" he asked in his wheezy voice.

* * *

Back to present time, at the Leone School Library…

* * *

"So, Maria, care for a cup of coffee?" Maria looked back in pleasant surprise at the husky feminine voice. The librarian had been ironing the pages of a book when she heard the voice of her co-worker, Carmelita Aves. The two had become good friends since Aves had gotten a job as an art teacher at the High School. They often talked over cups of coffee, the topics ranging from the day she found out that Rodolfo dined regularly with a gigantic painting he had of her, to her worries about Manny's safety. Carmelita always seemed to enjoy the Rodolfo stories the most, though Maria had no idea why.

Carmelita was leaning against the doorway with two cups of coffee in her hands. Her hair was as dark as night, though in just the right lighting, somebody could almost see green streaks scattered throughout the shoulder-length hair. Her crimson eyes were always piercing in their intensity, a family trait that she had also passed onto her daughter, Zoe Aves. She wore a nondescript brown skirt and white blouse. The only thing that she wore that stood out as anything unusual was the odd-looking bracelet on her wrist that would occasionally emit a loud beep that sounded like a truck backing up. She walked over and gave Maria one of the cups, then leaned back against the desk casually. "I heard about what happened to Manny and Frida. Such a shame," she remarked before drinking from her cup.

If Maria didn't know any better, she would have sworn she heard a hint of laughter in the other woman's words. "Yes, well, they're doing good now. Manny and Frida were both able to make it back to school. I gave Frida my Plata Peligrosa glove," she admitted.

Carmelita's eyes widened and she spit out all of her coffee on some poor boy that was about to pick out a book. "What?!" At the librarian's confused look, the art teacher smiled nervously. "Uh, what I mean to say is that is…good. Yes, that is very excelente!" She stood up and sat down her glass. "Oh, would you look at the time! My break is over, I need to get back to class!"

Maria frowned. "But your break just start-" However, the crimson-eyed woman had already zoomed out of the library, leaving a fairly confused Maria behind. "-ed."

* * *

Meanwhile…

* * *

Frida fidgeted restlessly in science class, which was the second to last class of the day. She hadn't been paying attention to anything the teachers had said all day. Well, more so than usual anyway. She just couldn't stop thinking about that glove. She couldn't remember ever feeling so alive as when she had soared through the polluted Miracle City skies with Manny and his mom hanging onto her legs. Now the glove was just sitting in her locker, waiting for her to put it on again. She knew Manny's mom had said to only put it on in emergencies, but the young rockstar just knew she could handle it! She had the watch that Maria had given her, so it's not like she couldn't set the timer on it. With that glove, she wouldn't just be the helpless little girl that tagged along with the Riveras and was repeatedly caged by Sartana of the Dead. She would be Plata Peligrosa!

"Uh…Frida, aren't you coming?" She was interrupted from her day-dreaming by Manny's voice. She looked around, surprised to see that class had ended and that all of the other students had already left for their last classes. Manny was standing next to her desk with a worried look on his face. Frida was _never_ the last to leave class. "Yeah, dude, of course I'm coming!" she answered him in her usual chipper voice, which seemed to relax him.

As they were walking to their last class of the day, they suddenly heard a gasp that was accompanied by a happy squeal. Before either of them could react, Frida was nearly knocked to the ground by a certain twelve-year-old. "You're alive!"

Frida stared blankly at the short boy with chili pepper on his shirt and glasses, then by some sort of miracle, she actually remembered-sort of-who he was. And what that meant. Her date with whatever-this-boy's-name-was would be tonight. She shrieked in horror. "Get off me, get off me!" she shouted as she waved her arms frantically.

"As you wish, my blue-haired light." Diego listened to her and let go of her, though he couldn't wipe the grin from his face. She was alive! He almost couldn't believe his eyes, but there she was, with not even a scratch. He put on what he believed to be a flirtatious look and leaned forward. "I'll see you tonight, my date." With that, he made an abrupt exit similar to his previous one. That's the tidbit of advice he had gleamed from his Grandfather during one of his more lucid moments; always leave 'em wanting more.

Manny seemed confused, while Frida looked like she was about to loose her lunch. "Who was that, and why did he call you his date?" he asked her.

Frida shuddered. "That is going to be my d-d-date tonight," she whispered, almost unable to say the word 'date'. She pulled out the legal document and handed it to him. "Can you believe it? I have to go out with…uhm…whoever that was. I can't remember his name. I think it's in the small print somewhere."

As Manny read the document, he felt an unfamiliar feeling. Jealousy. He was jealous that-he read the small print for the name- Diego was going to go out with Frida. "Is there anything you can do to get out of it?" he asked as he handed her back the document.

She sighed and shook her head. They started walking again as she talked. "Trust me, dude, if my dad couldn't find a way out, there **is** no way out." They were almost to the door of their last class, art, when she looked over and saw the strange look on his face. "Hey, you okay? You look like you just got a whiff of Humberto's soccer uniform."

"Me? Yeah, of course I'm fine," Manny lied. He opened the door and they walked through. They were halfway to their seats before they noticed how unusually quiet the classroom was. Usually it was borderline chaos before a class actually started. "Hey, where is everybody?" The teenage Rivera looked around the seemingly empty classroom. Just as the statement left his mouth, he heard a muffled sound. He followed the sound to the supply closet in the back of the room. When he opened the door, he found out where everybody was.

All of the students were tied up together with duct tape covering their mouths. He ripped the duct tape off of the mouth of the Mohawk-sporting Lupita. "What happened here?" he asked here. Before she could answer, the sound of the door closing and locking echoed throughout the room. He spun his belt buckle on instinct and with a flash of green light and the fierce roar of the tiger that was his namesake, he became… "El Tigre!" He turned around at the same time as Frida to see their captors.

Three women stood with weapons poised to attack the two teenagers. The eldest was short with grayed hair that in her youth had been a rich brown. There was an eye patch where her left eye should have been,. The eye she did have was orange, matching the orange eyes and strip on her helmet as well as the tinted visor and her talons. The dress she wore underneath the black jacket was gray. Her large collar was adorned with what appeared to be turkey feathers. Her weapon was the tip of her cane, which was shaped like a turkey. She was Lady Gobbler, leader of the Flock of Fury, mother to Voltura, and grandmother to Black Cuervo.

Voltura stood in the middle. Her helmet and talons were green. Her combat suit had white feathers on the cuffs and collar, and she had what appeared to be vulture feathers hanging down behind her almost like a cloak. The intense eyes of Carmelita Aves looked out through the green-tinted visor of the helmet. Her weapon came from a hidden compartment in her glove. She gave the two teenagers a vicious grin and joined in the birdlike laughter of her family.

The youngest was Black Cuervo. Her helmet's visor, eyes, and strip were purple, as was her talons. Her combat suit was similar to her mother's, minus the feathers. Finishing off the outfit were black and purple-striped stockings and her jetpack-propelled wings. Her crimson eyes were piercing just like her mother's, and her delicate mouth wore the same malicious grin. She had two weapons, one on each wrist. Her voice was more high-pitched than her mother's. "Buenos dias, hero."


	5. Scheming Galore!

Here's chapter five! In this one, we see the outcome of the fight, what Seniestro and Diego's revenge plan is, and more! Any questions, comments, compliments, or complaints? Reviews are always welcome!*Smile*

* * *

Chapter 5

Lady Gobbler and Black Cuervo's weapons fired at El Tigre, but Voltura fired at Frida. El Tigre managed to jump away from the lasers, but Frida was a little slower and Voltura's shot singed the side of her hair. El Tigre ran towards Gobbler and Cuervo, dodging orange and purple laser fire as he did. He jumped into the air and landed on the youngest Aves.

Voltura had been firing at Frida, growing more and more frustrated as the infuriatingly nimble child moved out of the way. She heard her daughter's surprised yelp and turned her attention to the young villainess wrestling with the young hero. Both teenager's had to keep dodging the orange lasers shooting out of Gobbler's weapon. Voltura glared at her mother. "Madre, stop shooting! You're going to hit her instead of the boy!"

Normally, this would be the time when Frida would come up with some bizarre way-usually involving her infamous goggles-to turn the tides in their favor. But a little worm of doubt had crept into her mind. She hadn't been able to turn the tides when Manny was fighting Señor Seniestro, what if the same thing happened here? She needed to get to her glove. She winced when Voltura and Lady Gobbler managed to yank Manny off Black Cuervo by his tigre tail, resulting in a catlike yelp from him. Okay, so she needed to move fast. She ran to the door, unlocked it, then ran out, not bothering to make sure the door closed quietly.

Voltura glanced up at the sound of the door clicking shut. "We'll take care of this gato, mija! You go get the girl!" She told her daughter.

She ran down the school halls as fast as she could, her bulky boots echoing louder than she would have liked. Everybody else were in their classes, and Vice Principal Chakal was probably in his office plotting a new plan to get rid of Manny Rivera. She skidded to a halt in front of her locker, panting from the run. She entered in the code for her lock. It was the date that she and Manny had met. Her expression fell when she saw an empty spot where the glove was supposed to be.

"Looking for this, Frida?" Black Cuervo was leaning against a column, her mouth curved into a wicked smile. She tossed the glove lightly from hand to hand. "Too bad." She threw the glove over her shoulder and lunged at the blue-haired girl.

* * *

Meanwhile, within the walls of Miracle City's prison…

* * *

Standing behind the bars of his cell stood El Oso. In front of those bars stood one of his appointed guards. The overweight guard and El Oso stared at each other. The bear-themed thug reached to itch his prison lice-infested arm, and the guard's eye twitched anxiously. "It's not going to happen again, Oso," the guard stated.

El Oso shrugged and went to lounge on the lumpy, uncomfortable jail bed. "Whatever you says, man," he drawled with an easy smile.

The mustached guard shifted his weight from foot to foot. "I can wait until the end of my shift," he repeated for what had to be the billionth time that night, almost as if he could convince himself if he said it enough. But it was becoming harder and harder to resist. He was even starting to sweat now. When was he going to learn to lay off the horchata?! The ticking of the clock was growing louder and louder. Finally, he couldn't take it any longer. "You stay right there!" he exclaimed before frantically running to relieve his poor bladder. He'd only be gone a second, what harm could the criminal do within such a short amount of time?

El Oso waited until the guard was out of sight before hopping to his feet and running over to the rug in the middle of the floor. A huge tunnel that led to sweet freedom that had been dug by Oso himself years ago was revealed to him. He would be free and robbing banks by sundown.

The guard returned with a relieved look on his face. That is, until he saw the empty cell. The rug had been moved back to hide the tunnel once more, leaving the guard confused like he always was the criminal's frequent escapes.. "Madre de Dios, how does he do that?!"

* * *

Back at the Leone School…

* * *

"Stop…moving…so I can…crush you!" Black Cuervo had Frida pinned down. She was attempting to pound her fist's into the other girl's face, but the frightened young rocker kept moving and Cuervo's black gloved fists had nearly pounded through the floor.

El Tigre was in conflict with the eldest Flock of Fury members. His claws had torn through both of their jetpacks and their helmets were now scratched up, but their lasers had left burns on his arm and stomach. No sooner would he dodge one bird-themed villain and the other would be attacking him. Little did he know, that their attacks were sending him closer and closer into the corner of the room, where he would no longer be able to dodge their attacks.

Outside of the Miracle City Prison and by the Park, an inconspicuous looking boulder was moved aside for El Oso to surface. He was pushing the boulder back when he felt a presence behind him. He whirled around, ready and willing to fight any guard, cop, or superhero that would get in between him and lice-free freedom. His eyes narrowed at the robotic cowboy who was there instead. "Chu here for a fight or what, man?" he asked suspiciously.

Señor Seniestro shook his head. "No, I come here to propose a pardnership," he replied. Chipotle and him had worked out the plan the previous night, and both had agreed that Sergio would call in sick at school to put the plan in motion. The sooner, the better. At El Oso's confused look, the robot-savvy supervillain gave a sinister smile to match his name. "I'm gatherin' all the villains in this here town," he explained, "With our combined might, we can defeat that rotten El Tigre and be rid of him **forever**!" He held out a robotic hand to the now grinning bear thug. "So, is it a deal?"

Back at the school, Cuervo growled wrapped a clawed hand tightly around Frida's throat, forcing the helpless girl to remain still. The villainess reared her fist back. Suarez's demise was so close she could almost taste the victory. Finally, she would have her revenge!

A whistle of air was the only warning Black Cuervo had before a large silver fist ran into her with enough force to knock her off of Frida and send her flying into the lockers hard enough to cause them to collapse on top of her.

"Wow." Frida looked at her rescuer in amazement. It was the Plata Peligrosa glove. She knew the glove had a mind of its own, but it was still amazing to see it do things of its own free will. Then she remembered that she had left Manny alone with Voltura and Gobbler. She held out her hand for the glove. "Come on, we gotta go save Manny!"

El Tigre's back hit the wall, and the two grown villainesses held up their weapons. The sound of lasers warming up filled the room, but if they thought they had defeated him, they either had bad memories or had grown confident from the temporary crime hiatus they had taken in order to train after the supervillain rampage incident two years ago. Either way, they were still going to lose this fight, because Manny already saw a way out. Just as he was about to shoot out his claws to jam their weapons, Frida decided to make her entrance.

"Plata Peligrosa!" Frida ripped the door out, and took some of the wall with it. She instantly smiled when she saw that Manny was alright, then her attention was instantly focused on Voltura and Lady Gobbler. With a battle lust that she had never experienced before and the infamous Plata Peligrosa war cry, she flew at the two startled supervillains.

Voltura and Gobbler didn't stand a chance against the silver-clothed superhero. For a few seconds they were able to dodge the relentless, which only infuriated Frida more. Gobbler tripped on a stray pencil that had been left on the floor by a careless student, which in turn caused her much taller daughter to trip over her. The young Plata Peligrosa's vicious grin widened with each punch and kick she landed on the two helpless supervillains. It wasn't long before the fight was clearly over.

Frida stood over the thoroughly pummeled women with her hands on her hips in a victorious pose. "And stay down!" she told them, like they could have gotten away if they had even wanted to. She ran over to where Manny was untying all of the students. "Dude, did you see the way I handled those two?! They didn't even stand a chance against me!" she boasted. "I bet I could take on a hundred villains. No, a thousand!" She gasped as she thought of something. "I bet I could take on Sartana of the Dead now! No more being captured! I could- "

Manny looked over at her as she continued talking about all of the different things she could do with her new powers. "Hey, aren't you going to take the glove off?" he interrupted.

"Oh, yeah, I forgot I still had it on." Frida smiled sheepishly. She gently took it off and cradled it in her arms as if it were a baby. "You're just such a comfy womfy little wittle glove, aren't you? Yes, you are," she cooed, not noticing the disturbed look Manny gave her.

After the police arrived and took the bruised and battered Flock of Fury away in handcuffs, Manny and Frida hastily slipped away and headed back to her house before Vice Principal Chakal could yell at them about the damage that had been done to the school.

As soon as they walked through the door, the usually serious Mrs. Suarez came running over to them with an armful of dresses and a gigantic grin. "Frida Suarez, **where** have you been?!" the brunette judge asked her daughter. "We have to get you ready for your big date tonight!" She looked over at Manny with an expression that clearly read 'Why are you still here?'. "I'm sure we'll see you tomorrow, Manuel," she said, trying to subtly hint for him to leave.

Manny sighed in reluctance and looked over at his horrified best friend. "Well…I guess I'll see you tomorrow," he said as he was practically pushed out the door by Frida's mother. "Bye!" he managed to get out before the door was closed in his face.

* * *

Later that night…

* * *

"Mama, stop already, my hair is fine!" Frida slapped away her mother's hands. Her hair had been done, redone, washed, then redone again. She had lost count of the number of hair products and different makeup brands that had been used on her, and she swore that she had changed dresses a thousand times before her mother had decided on the first one. Her blue hair was in-ugh-curls that had taken her madre **forever** to make "just right." She was wearing dark eyeliner, mascara, eye shadow, red lipstick, and blush. Her dress was a red floor-length dress that had short, ruffled sleeves. After half an hour of negotiating, she was allowed to go jewelry-free and wear her goggles, but she had to wear the fancy dress shoes that her mother had picked for her. She was just thankful her sisters weren't home to amplify her humiliation. "It's bad enough that I have to go on this date without you making me wear all this basura!"

"Frida, it's not garbage. It's to make you look nice and bonita for your date!" Mrs. Suarez explained cheerfully. Her large brown eyes glanced over to the clock on the wall. "Who should be here any moment," she said. She motioned over to where Emiliano Suarez was rummaging around a closet. "Your Papi is getting the camera to take pictures of you two." This managed to pull a mortified groan from the aspiring rockstar.

"Why are you guys so excited anyway?" Frida asked. "You didn't act like this when I went out with Silverwolf," she said.

"Aha, found it!" Emiliano held up the camera like a trophy. "Silverwolf was a criminal villain. He was a bad influence on you, and I am glad that the muchacho had to leave town," he answered unashamedly. Chief Suarez and his wife were still clueless to the fact that Silverwolf had in fact been the Titanium Titan-Rodolfo's ex-sidekick turned supervillain-in disguise.

Mrs. Suarez spoke up, "And this new boy-what was his name again?" She frowned in puzzlement for a moment before shaking her head. "Well, anyway, mija, this new boy sounds like such a good child. A role model even. I'm sure it would do you so good to hang out with someone like him for a change inst-"

She was cut off by Emiliano, "Instead of that troublemaking Rivera punk!" His fists were clenched in anger at the thought of the young feline-themed super that he so despised. Little did they know that the 'role model' they talked about was in fact a supervillain.

At Casa Del Macho…

What's the worst that could happen? Manny asked himself. He had gone straight to his room within the Rivera household after he had been kicked out of the Suarez abode. He hadn't been able to stop pacing. He'd tried watching TV. He'd tried reading comic books, VQ, and HQ, but no matter what he did, his mind kept returning to one thing: Frida Suarez. It wasn't like she actually liked the guy, and he looked like a total loser, but… He froze at a sudden thought. What if something happened and she ended up enjoying herself?! Worse, what if she ended up liking the nerd?! He hadn't even been able to enact his plan to make her realize that she liked **him**!

The Rivera's pet bird-a green, one-legged, buck-toothed parrot name Señor Chappi that only knew one catchphrase-flew in and landed on the end of his bed. "Viva pantelones?" the bird squawked.

"Of course I'm going to do something!" Manny exclaimed. When the bird squawked its saying again, he gave a false explanation, as if the bird would judge him if Señor Chappi knew the real reason. "I have to! For, uh, Frida's sake. Like she'd actually be happy with that guy? I'd be doing her a favor," he reasoned. He spun his belt buckle to become El Tigre, then he raised his hand in the air to make another Rivera-style pact. "I will ruin that date- this I swear!"


	6. A date to remember?

Authors Note: Read, review, and most importantly, enjoy!

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Chapter 6

To her ears, it was the most horrible sound in the world. What was supposed to be a cheerful doorbell tune became an omen of what was sure to be the worst night in her life. Frida seemed to be frozen in absolute terror while her parents went to answer the door. The blue-haired girl seemed to sweat more and more the closer her mother's hand got to the doorknob.

Carmela and Emiliano Suarez greeted their small visitor together. Carmela was wearing a warm, welcoming smile, while Chief Suarez was back to his usual stern and imposing self. "Come in! Frida is all ready to go; she's been looking forward to your date all day," Carmela lied while she led Diego over to where Frida stood, still frozen.

Frida stared at the short scientist, who stared back. He was, of course, in his civilian camouflage. He appeared to have two perfectly normal arms, glasses, and had slicked back his wild brown hair. He had dressed up in a black and white tuxedo for the special occasion, complete with bowtie and shiny, black dress shoes. In a very weird, nerdy kind of way, though she would never in a billion years admit it, he almost looked….cute.

Dr. Chipotle Jr. couldn't take his eyes off of the gorgeous goddess in front of him. From the way the makeup brought out her brilliant azure eyes, her ruby-red lips, the way her sky-blue curls artfully framed her face, the way that dress fit her like a dream, to those "rose-hued goggles of love" that he so adored, the loud supervillain was left speechless for what had to be the first time in his life.

The silence was broken by Carmela taking pictures. "Smile for the camera!" Chipotle instantly put his arm around Frida's shoulders. She started to recoil away, but stopped when she caught her mother's warning glare.

Frida rolled her eyes after the fifteenth camera flash. "Uh, mom, don't you think that's enough pictures for now?" she asked. The less evidence there was, the better.

Mrs. Suarez gave a sheepish smile and put away the camera. "I guess you're right. I'm just so excited!" she cooed happily. "Your father will walk you two out. Oh, and don't forget your purse!" the brunette judge added.

While the Chief of Police walked the two teenagers out, he started going on and on about how the two needed to behave, that Frida needed to be home by ten, and everything else that a father might say when his beloved youngest daughter was going out on a date.

"Now, you two go and have fun," Emiliano finally told them. Just before he went inside, he turned around one last time to issue them an ominous warning. "Within reason!" And with that, he disappeared into the Suarez house.

Little did any of them know that two green eyes spied on them from a rooftop, watching their every move. El Tigre stealthily followed them to the pet store. In front of the puppy window, Chipotle had set up a table draped with an elegantly-embroidered golden cover and two chairs. Atop the table sat a lit candle and silver platters with lids that hid their food.

"Puppies!" Frida ran over to the store window to look at the adorable, sleeping canines. She was giggling at a particular puppy that was kicking in its sleep when her date tapped her shoulder to get her attention. "What?"

Diego was holding something behind his back. "For you, **mi amore**," he said. He pulled out the bouquet of blue flowers that he had been hiding and held them out to her.

"Thanks, dude, that's really…nice." Frida managed a half-genuine smile when she took the flowers. Even though she wasn't usually a flower kind of girl, she had to admit that they did look really nice. They were even the color of her hair. She lifted the bouquet to her face to see if they smelled as good as they looked. Unfortunately, the scent of flowers wasn't the only thing she caught. Somehow escaping the rocker's notice, there was some kind of large beetle with pinchers just as big sitting among the flowers. "Ow!" She dropped the flowers to the ground and tried to pull off the gigantic insect, with little success.

Behind a group of bushes near where Frida and Diego were, Manny winced in guilt at seeing his best friend get hurt. He had been hoping that she would see the beetle before trying to smell the flowers. He took a small amount of satisfaction though in knowing that their night was off to as bad start as he watched her crimson-eyed date try to pull the bug off.

The young evil genius finally managed to pull off the beetle and threw it to the ground. He aimed his secretly mechanical arm at the insect, ready to blast the creature into a million little pieces until he remembered that Frida was standing next to him and doing so would reveal his true identity. The bug managed to skitter away before Diego could squish it with his shoe.

When he looked like he was about to chase after it, Frida waved her hand. "Don't worry about it, I'm fine. Let's just eat," she said. He ran over to pull out her chair for her.

Diego pushed her chair in after she sat down, then rushed over to his side of the table. "We're having a **special** dinner," he stated proudly. "Churros." He lifted the lids from the platters to reveal what had to be the most mouthwatering, delicious looking churros that the blue-haired teenager had ever seen.

Frida gasped in delight. She forgot about the beetle and her sore nose. She forgot about never wanting to go on the date. At that moment, there was only one thing on her mind: eating the churros. She gobbled hers down in record time, hardly taking a breath in-between bites. After she was done, she caught the scent of Jr.'s unusual cologne. "Why do I smell guacamole?"

Diego leaned forward across the table. "It's my cologne. Do you like it? It's called 'Guacamole Amore'." He wagged his eyebrows suggestively. A creaking sound warned him a split second before the table collapsed. Apparently, a certain claw-wielding teen had whittled away the legs of the table until they were no wider than toothpicks.

Just as Frida was about to help her date up, her eyes were drawn over to the bushes by a muffled yowl that sounded oddly feline. "Huh?" She started walking over to the source of the noise. "I'll be right back, Don- er, Diego, I'm going to go check that out," she said absentmindedly. "You stay here," she added.

Manny pulled on the giant insect that had clamped its powerful pinchers on the super's striped tail. It was the same beetle that he had put in Chipotle's present to Frida not so long ago. He yanked it off, but the stubborn bug skittered away with a chunk of fur in its pinchers.

Frida frowned in confusion as she watched him. "Manny? What are you doing here? And why are you hiding in the bushes?" Then the aspiring rocker had a very rare moment of clarity. "Dude, did you put that bug in the flowers? And did you make that table break?" The guilty look on her friend's face was confirmation enough. "Why would you do those things?"

Manny opened his mouth to give her the same fake, altruistic reason for sabotaging her date that he had given to Senor Chappi, but then he stopped. She was the one person that he never kept things from or lied to. It was time to tell her the truth. He took a deep breath and let the truth rush out, "Frida, there's something that I need to tell you. I-I love you." He winced, preparing himself for the emotional blow that would shred his heart if he had been wrong in his thinking that she loved him. Funny, how in all of his planning he had never allowed himself to acknowledge the thought that she might not feel anything for him. A silence that seemed to stretch forever greeted him. He finally dared to look at her, to see the expression on her face.

At first Frida couldn't believe what she had heard. Surely she had been imagining things. For a moment there she thought that her best friend and partner in crime since preschool had confessed that he loved her. She replayed the last several seconds in her head, and yes, sure enough, that was exactly what he had done. She didn't know what to do. Did she feel the same way? She remembered the odd feeling she got whenever she saw him with another girl. Had that been jealously? And what about the strange flutter of her heart whenever he was close? Nobody else could make her laugh or smile like he did. Then there was that kiss…she had almost convinced herself that it had been one of the many things that she did without thinking, that it had meant nothing. But if it had meant nothing, then why did she relive it in her mind every night?

He was looking at her expectantly now, waiting for her to say something, anything. But what should she say? She felt herself speak, and as she spoke she could feel the truth of them in her heart. "Manny…I love you too." The smile on his face could have lit the entire city, and she couldn't help but to smile back at him. "So, what do you say we go toilet paper Casa De Adios? We haven't done that in like ages," she said suddenly.

Manny's smile widened at her usual randomness, then he remembered something. "But, what about your date? Aren't your parents expecting you to, I dunno, not dump him?" he asked.

Frida just looked at him. "Dude, since when have I **ever** done what my parents expected?" she countered.


End file.
